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Mark Jennings

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Without Walls

Without Walls is an exhibition initiated by Mark Jennings whose artwork, poetry and classical guitar music have been published in previous issues of Homeless Diamonds. He describes how the exhibition came about:

Living in a St Mungo's hostel gave me a physical and psychological space to rediscover painting. I started to paint a lot and the interest the staff showed in my work gave what I was doing an added dimension. Painting became a bridge connecting me to others.

I became aware that many creative people lived within the hostel environment. This set me thinking. What if we had a space to exhibit where the work would really be seen? Would it challenge conceptions of who homeless people are? Would homeless people see themselves as empowered? I took the step of approaching The Guardian to inspire myself and other homeless people, to raise the bar on our expectations of what we have to contribute and how it may be received.

The name 'Without Walls' is intentionally ambiguous. Walls can give shelter, protect or confine. And what of psychological walls and how they support our reality constructs for better or worse? The exhibition is therefore deliberately un-themed to avoid placing the artists in a 'homeless' box and better reflect each individual's choices, interests and perceptions.

The exhibition was organised by Mark, with support from Simon Richardson (StMungo’s), Jennifer Burnham (Homeless Diamonds), Michael Wong (Cafe Art) and Luke Dodd (The Guardian). Unfortunately, with limited space in the gallery, it was only possible for a quarter of the work entered (which came from all over London) to be included in the show. More of this work will be published in future issues of Homeless Diamonds and some will be appearing on the Cafe Art website (and in a cafe near you!)

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